West rallies by Cooper in late innings

Friday

May 18, 2012 at 9:54 PM

David Just

ABILENE - Cooper isn't used to playing from behind.

And for most of Friday's Region I-3A semifinal against No. 9 West, the second-ranked Lady Pirates didn't have to. But Cooper unraveled in the final two innings, and West scored seven unanswered runs to claim a 7-1 victory at Wells Field.

The series resumes at 11 a.m. today, and the Lady Pirates need to sweep a doubleheader in order to advance.

"A lot of us got down just because we're not used to that," Cooper center fielder Pam Pence said. "That's what messed us up and caused what just happened."

Cooper (31-4) committed four errors, had a costly baserunning mistake and mustered only four hits in the loss. The Lady Pirates led 1-0 through four innings and gave up seven runs over the final three.

Pitcher Lauren Heinrich cruised through the first half of the game. She struck out eight and walked one.

Her fortune changed the third time through West's order, though. The Lady Trojans had only two hits through the first four innings and had 11 in the final three.

"We didn't play very aggressively out in the field," Cooper coach Landon Winton said. "If they're going to play aggressive and we're not going to play aggressive, then we're not going to get it done."

Heinrich drove in Cooper's lone run with an RBI double to the left-center field gap in the bottom of the third inning.

The Lady Pirates squandered two more opportunities to score. After the first two hitters of the game reached base on errors in the first, the heart of Cooper's lineup went down in order.

Later, in the fifth inning, Kacy Springer led off with a bunt single, then got caught between second and third base after a perfectly executed sacrifice by Pence. It was the last time Cooper would have a runner in scoring position.

"Getting this far we're just getting nervous and we're rushing and not making the plays we normally do," Pence said.

That was less of a problem for West, which is looking to make the state finals for the third year in a row. The Lady Trojans never rattled after falling behind.

"That's just the nature of these kids," West coach Guyla Smith said. "They just keep plugging away."

Erin Knox, who came on in relief in the fourth inning to earn the win, was 3 for 4 with a double, and Jennifer Prnka was 2 for 4 with three RBIs.

Pence had a pair of diving catches in center field, each of which saved a run from scoring, and those were the lone highlights of Cooper's day.

"We're going to talk about reaching down and digging a little deeper," Winton said, "and playing with a little more guts. I think we've got a better game in us somewhere. I hope we can bring it out tomorrow."